My second chinese "date"


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1. Beijing 02.04.08

2. Beijing 03.04.08

3. Beijing 04.04.08

4. Beijing 05.04.08

MAP 1 Beijing-Yingxian

5. Beijing-LouCun 06.04.08

6. Lou Cun-YudouCun 07.04.08

7. YudouCun-Laiyuan 08.04.08

8. Laiyuan-Wangzhuang 09.04.08

9. Wangzhuang-Hunyuan 10.04.08

MAP 2 Yingxian-Taiyuan

10. Hunyuan-Dai Xian 11.04.08

11. Dai Xian-Xinzhou 12.04.08

12. Xinzhou-Taiyuan 13.04.08

MAP 3 Taiyuan-Linfen

13. Taiyuan-Pingyao 14.04.08

14. Pingyao 15.04.08

15. PingyaoHuozhou 16.04.08

16. Houzhou-Xiangfen 17.04.08

17. Xiangfen-Hejin 18.04.08

MAP 4 Linfen-Weinan

18. Hejin-Heyang 19.04.08

19. Heyang-Dali 20.04.08 Heyang-Dali

20. Dali-Xi'an 21.04.08

21. Xi'an 22.04.08

22. Xi'an 23.04.08

23. Xi'an 24.04.08

24. Xi'an 25.04.08

MAP 5 Weinan-Hanzhong

25. Xi'an-Mazhao 26.04.08

26. Mazhao-Yangxian 27.04.08

27. Yangxian-Mian Xian 28.04.08

28. Mian Xian-Ningqiang 29.04.08

29. Ningqiang-Guangyuan 30.04.08

MAP 6 Hanzhong-Mianyang

30. Guangyuan-Jianmen Pass 01.05.08

31. Jianmen Pass-Zitong 02.05.08

32. Zitong-Loujiang 03.05.08

33. Luojiang-Chengdu 04.05.08

34. Chengdu 05.05.08

35. Chengdu 06.05.08

36. Chengdu 07.05.08

37. Chengdu 08.05.08

38. Chengdu 09.05.08

MAP 7 Mianyang-Maoxian

39. Chengdu-Dujiangyan 10.05.08

40. Dujiangyan-Miansi 11.05.08

41. Miansi-Maoxian 12.05.08

42. Maoxian 13.05.08

43. Maoxian 14.05.08

44. Maoxian 15.05.08

45. Maoxian 16.05.08

46. Maoxian 17.05.08

47. Maoxian 18.05.08

48. Maoxian-Chengdu 19.05.08

49. Chengdu-Chongqing 20.05.08

50. Chongqing-Wanzhou 21.05.08

51. Yangtze River 22.05.08

52. Yangtze River-Wuhan 23.05.08

53. Wuhan 24.05.08

54. Beijing 25.05.08

55. Beijing 26.05.08

56. Beijing 27.05.08

57. Beijing 28.05.08

58. Beijing 29.05.08

59. Beijing 30.05.08

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English Version 23

Friday 25.04.08
Xi’an

Another long day. Time is limited it seems.
First I go to the supermarket. There’s one at the west gate, where I can go in 5 min. I have a list of things I have to do or buy, while I’m in Xi’an. It’s long.
This supermarket isn’t just big, it’s HUGE. I get a good impression of two stories, but the stairs goes on. Four I think.
I find the clothes pegs, but they don’t sell string! I show them my clothes pegs, point at my laces and drag them out with my hands and hang an imaginary piece in the form of a small bag of washing powder on it. After having been through every single saleswoman in the department for hardware the conclusion is depressing: Meiyou. Don’t have. I can’t believe it. They’ve got EVERYTHING. Later one from the hotel accompanies me to another shop and I get my 6 m green string, which now is hanging all through my room fastned to an electrical wire in one end and a water pipe in the other.
 


The citywall is wide as a freeway View towards the center of Xi'an

14.30 o’clock
Now I`ve climbed another wall! You might guess which? The city wall of Xi`an. Like in Pingyao the old wall is still standing - or parts of it must have been rebuilt, because according to Lonely Planet China it doesn`t. It`s quite another experience than The great Wall at Simatai. It`s as wide as two lanes and a shoulder in each direction - around 12 m the guidebook tells. It`s just flat of course and when you look to the sides there`s no nature just houses. On the inside lots of beautiful old style Chinese houses, but mostly new ones. On the outside the skyscrapers are reaching for heaven. The sky is the limit it seems.

You can hire bicycles here, it`s a mere 14 km to go all the way round. As I was not allowed to bring my own bike I didn`t rent one. Might also be good for my legs to do some walking?
I met some Danish people from a larger group on bikes. As they stopped right in front of me I couldn`t help saying: Oh there are others on bicycles? In Danish of course. They didn`t pay much attention. One of the men was wearing a t-shirt which said: I climbed The great Wall, so I asked them where they`d climbed it? A lady said: Oh, I don`t know, where was it?
They didn`t know!
I couldn`t help feeling a bit sorry for them. They were like cattle or sheep being dragged from one eating spot to another. Maybe I sound too much like a saint? I guess I feel like it too - sorry.
Having walked about 1 km from the entry spot at the south gate I can see just one person passing me any minute. To the other side they`re just pixels on a TV-screen. You can be alone here too. Now the guy is gone but small dots are closing in. Better be on my way!
I walk all the way to the southwest corner. When I`m on my way back I meet a Chinese woman I passed earlier. Then she was walking backwards as to find a better spot for a photo. Now she`s STILL walking backwards. Interesting. There must be some special Chinese culture burried here!
I`ve done it all wrong. Maybe the evil spirits will come haunting me?
 
Later I go for the The small wild goose Pagoda and The big wild goose Pagoda. There’s not much to say about it but I’ve grown accustomed to finding my way and act in the traffic. Almost like a native. But it’s a long way and I’m not back until 18.15 and have to buy a deodorant and take a shower before my “date” with Carly.
Another Chinese woman with dreams of something else but the present and predictable.
I’ve told her I’m a postman and don’t earn much so she leads me to the muslim quarters, where she knows the right places, and a special Dumpling-restaurant, where we get what’s called beef and soup. The meat is frozen when the dough is wrapped around it and that’s why the meat juice stays in the package. There’s also a bowl of soya sauce. She teaches me how to do and with the very last dumpling I succeed.
Once more a woman who is extremely open about political stuff. We discuss the Cultural revolution, when she wasn’t born yet and I hadn’t a clue about what was really going on. The campaign for extinguishing the sparrows she’s never heard about, she can’t really believe it, but will not deny it either. Neither does she know about The big leap Forward.
The evening flys by so quickly. It’s exciting but at the same time exhausting, because her pronaunciation isn’t as good as Jiayuan’s. From time to time we have to clear up words and expressions she doesn’t understand.
The last we come to talk about before she has to go home is her idol!
I’m standing at this point, if not I’d fallen down from the chair: Erwin Rommel.
She pronounce him “rømmen”, but it IS he. I can’t believe it. Why? She’s read a lot of books about him – in Chinese. I’m very surprised. And then I get a lecture on his great skills as a soldier and army commander, what I don’t doubt, and his resistance against Hitler. I didn’t know anything else than he’d made life difficult for the allied forces in North Africa, so I just listen.
In this way it’s almost midnight and I have another address to e-mail.

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